by NAMRATA JOSHI
“Katrina [Kaif] claims to have modeled herself on Priyanka Gandhi in Rajneeti.” PHOTO/Outlook
It’s not just publicists and producers, the stars themselves are turning marketing gurus, with Aamir Khan—more hard-nosed, calculating and canny than any publicist—leading the pack. His forte lies in effectively projecting his films as being at the cutting edge of modern-day debates and “causes”—middle-class activism with Rang De Basanti, dyslexia with Tare Zameen Par and education with Three Idiots. He is the master of the photo-op, popping up in different disguises in unlikely places such as Varanasi and Palanpur, and even Sourav Ganguly’s house in Calcutta. For Ghajini, he used a new hairstyle as a marketing tool, and even gave his fans a free cut in Delhi’s Bengali market. No wonder the marketing of Ghajini became a case study at IIM Ahmedabad. So what will he do next with his production Peepli Live? “These days it’s not just the Aamir film that people look forward to, he even creates anticipation about how he will market it,” says Chaudhary.
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